After 12-21-2012 lost interest in alternative theories i am now Skeptic

I am long time visitor of ATS since 2004 though i was not very active in participating or replying to threads, i was very active and avid reader
visiting every day reading most of the topics created here. but all these days i was more of a believer in UFOlogy, Paranormals, Doomsday and
Alternative Science etc etc than skeptic, starting with blossom good child i was expecting atleast i will see some hard evidence during the course of
time here but to my surprise nothing came true and totally enlightened when 2012 prediction passed by.

Now i believe that there is no UFO's, GOD, EVIL etc, everything i believe now is wrt to SCIENCE.

It is a good thing to be skeptical. A real skeptic looks at all the info, evidence and makes a judgement. That doesn't mean to be closed minded and
say there is no such a thing as Aliens, etc. No one should believe everything they see, hear or read on the internet.. Weigh and use reason and
logic.. And be open to possibilities..

Maybe that is what they wanted you to believe?
Maybe they knew everybody would lose interest and now they are heavily criticising conspiracy theroists in the main stream media?
Maybe you are following the exact path that is paved for you?
Or maybe im heavily paranoid and everybody is out to get us?

I think there is a huge disparity between what we want to be and what actually is.

The world would be a much more exciting place (or destroyed) if just 5% of the stuff posted here was true.

I personally have no belief in doomsday prophecies, but I like reading about them. I'm open minded about UFOs, but I like reading about them. I
don't agree with religion, but I enjoy debating it. I do believe in science, and probability.

Now, even the stuff I don't believe in, I wonder...what if?

Just cause I don't believe in it doesn't make it untrue.

Like the x-files tag line states...I want to believe...I just need the proof that renders something probable.

it seems you were had, 2012 conspiracy was used to get people to stop thinking out side the box and continue living 9-5. once tptb gets the majority
to live as sheep it will be much easier to rule the heard, just a thought.

Originally posted by snowlord
I am long time visitor of ATS since 2004 though i was not very active in participating or replying to threads, i was very active and avid reader
visiting every day reading most of the topics created here. but all these days i was more of a believer in UFOlogy, Paranormals, Doomsday and
Alternative Science etc etc than skeptic, starting with blossom good child i was expecting atleast i will see some hard evidence during the course of
time here but to my surprise nothing came true and totally enlightened when 2012 prediction passed by.

Now i believe that there is no UFO's, GOD, EVIL etc, everything i believe now is wrt to SCIENCE.

What do you guys think?

The only thing you should believe in, is YOURSELF. All the other stuff is just a distraction. Believe in yourself, and then you will be able to see
things, as they really are.

Personally I would like to congratulate you on your newfound skepticism.

I have seen a few people reply that "this might be just what they want you to believe", that it is closed-minded of you or something along those
lines.
But I think they misunderstand the concept of skepticism. In fact, believing anything without evidence, or in any way asserting things, to the extend
that people often do here on ATS, is being closed-minded.

Here is a link for an excellent video, which explains it better than I can. At this moment the video starts some 7 minutes in, at a specific part
which explains how skeptical thinking results in an open mind. But I would urge anyone who has 10 minutes to watch the entire thing.

I prefer to feel my way through life, is that so bad? Being a skeptic on every subject that can't be scientifically proven is pretty dull. I don't
have a problem believing something until I discover I'm mistaken. Believing means committing yourself and that commitment can often lead to some deep
explorations which a skeptic would probably pass over. Isn't life to be explored and experienced rather than just thought about?

Yes, I can be pretty bad, if the parameters by which you feel your way are faulty. This can be due to misconception, mental illness, indoctrination
and such, and can result in all kinds of conflicts.

Being a skeptic on every subject that can't be scientifically proven is pretty dull.

I would argue that both approaches to life could be both dull and exciting. But not being skeptical about things, my cause you spend a lot of time
doing something, with the intention of achieving something, which will never happen because you have been misled.

I don't have a problem believing something until I discover I'm mistaken. Believing means committing yourself and that commitment can often lead to
some deep explorations which a skeptic would probably pass over.

Being skeptic means that you question something. Which is undoubtedly more explorative than not questioning anything. Further more, when you commit
yourself to something without evidence, it will be harder for you to accept the truth if you are proven wrong. Cause you are committed.

Isn't life to be explored and experienced rather than just thought about?

Being skeptical does not imply that people just think about things. There is nothing purely theoretical about skepticism. Skepticism will push you to
explore and experience the world, so that you might be able to verify or disprove a proposed concept.

But people who have already made up their mind and committed themselves to it i.e. closed-minded people. Will often just leave it at that, cause they
believe they already know the answer.

So you went from one extreme to the other. How is this helpful to you as a thinking person in the least? How about balance instead? How about
objectivity? Analyzing all data instead of just what confirms your own world view.

Don't be fooled. Many who claim to be skeptics are not. They are closed minded, lopsided debunkers who scoff at anything that doesn't fit in their
neat little paradigm.

A true "skeptic" will look at all sides, and consider all evidence as objectively as possible before making a determination. A skeptic isn't trying
to confirm their personal bias.

Maybe that is what they wanted you to believe?
Maybe they knew everybody would lose interest and now they are heavily criticising conspiracy theroists in the main stream media?
Maybe you are following the exact path that is paved for you?
Or maybe im heavily paranoid and everybody is out to get us?

Who knows.

You decide.

The red pill
Or the blue pill.

ugh i'm sick of these trite replies of regurgitated thinking. everything is duality with you people. i'm sorry i joined this site

Statistically speaking, it's highly unlikely that we are the only planet in the universe which has living beings populating it. You cannot disprove a
negative. Whether or not a God exists is irrelevant until hypothesized God makes itself known to us. Good and evil are subjective stances. All of
morality is. What is evil to one person may be good to another, or vice-versa. If you were hoping to find an unchanging truth on ATS, you were looking
in the wrong place. This is a soap-box for subjective expression; not a platform for objective reasoning.

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